Gorgon getting closer....

[yorke]

Hi yorke,

We must know each other....

I spent four years on Varanus Island as a youngster doing vac work whilst putting myself thru Uni. I arrived just after Bond Petroleum went down the gurgler and Hadson Energy took over the place. They were still selling as much full strength beer as you could skoll for the first two years I was there, but scaled back to a max of a six pack of lite beer in the latter stages.

I fondly remember, as the ****e kicker at the bottom of the ladder being given the task of picking up 8 years of accumulated cigarette butts that had been tossed onto the lawn next to the foodhall and bar. What a pleasant job for a non-smoker. Managed to fill up 3/4 of a 44 gallon drum. The next day the smokers were flicking their butts at the lawn again.

I worked for the company that built the 3 oil storage tanks so there was no grass, no houses and no bitumen road when I was there. They would take us in there with an old Fokker seaplane I nicknamed the Flying Fokker, half the time was flying the other half it was Fokked and they had to take us in or pick us up with the Huey.

http://i624.photobucket.com/albums/tt329/yorke_1234/fb2.jpg

They started the six-pack rule when I was there in '84 to stop us drinking all night and go to work in the morning. The wet room closed at 10PM and all cans were sold opened to stop us hoarding the beer and party all night. Didn't really worked, at 9:30 everyone would buy a six-pack and take it out to reseal the cans with duct tape then go back in and get another six-pack for the road. (or two if we went fishing)

This is what the place looked like about 2 months before I left,

http://i624.photobucket.com/albums/tt329/yorke_1234/t1.jpg
http://i624.photobucket.com/albums/tt329/yorke_1234/t2.jpg

 

[Dazz]

Fantastic photos of the tanks yorke.....you were certainly there many years before I was.....looks like they were put in just as I was finishing primary school.

I spent many hours on those tanks. They all had floating rooves, with those big struts holding up the roof when they were empty. 250,000 bbls of crude each. It was amazing when the tankers cam in and the shipping boys would be pumping flat out to fill the tanker and the floating rooves would quickly slide down.

I had the privilege of conducting the testing of the crude one time and recording the data on the official sheets that were the basis for payment.

We took samples at three levels of the tank, just at the top, mid way down and the sloppy sludge near the bottom of the tank and averaged all three. I remember having to write down the number 158.9873 as that was the number of litres in a bbl. All at 60deg F.

Good exercise climbing up the stairs on the side as well. We used to do that for fitness after work. Thanks for building them. They form a pleasant chunk of my memories as a young oilfiled worker.

 

[Aaron Sice]

meeeeeeeemmmmories - from the corners of my mind....

 

[Ausprop]

ooh yeah... anyone else taste a boom?

http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/-/mp/5832875/super-boom-forecast-as-gorgon-go-ahead-looms/

 

[Dazz]

ooh yeah... anyone else taste a boom?

Impossible Ausprop. Perth has had it's boom.


Apparently the epicentre of the world - Sydney - is where all booms originate. We must wait our turn again until the ripple filters across the paddock and the cycle starts again.


How dare these 50B resource contracts not respect the normal housing cycle.


Hope a few of the major suppliers are looking for yard space. Time for another market rental review maybe ?? Yippee.

 

[HiEquity]

C'mon fellas - it's a little early to pop the champagne corks!

Two remaining issues (as pointed out already in this thread!)
- Peter Garrett
- The Final Investment Decision by the JV partners...

The first one looks a bit like a shoe in now with the PM talking up the prospects and benefits of the project etc - not the normal response from a govt about to block a project!

The second one is much more uncertain... $50bn is a lot of money - it's no wonder Barnett is starting along the "put up or shut up" line now... and the fact the partners seem to be shutting up, compared to their previous publicity work, isn't a good sign!

Mind you the upside is considerable so it may well be worth having some more skin in the game...

 

[Ausprop]

the head of Shell doesn't fly to Perth to try out the local cappuccinos... I'm calling this deal as good as done

 

[Aaron Sice]

either way, my investment strategy now stretches to the NW.

i can feel it - it's eerie - commercial and resi....

 

[yorke]

C'mon fellas - it's a little early to pop the champagne corks!
.

Only by a few hours.

http://business.theage.com.au/business/money-talks-in-china-deal-20090818-ep47.html

Money talks in China deal
Mathew Murphy and Michelle Grattan
August 19, 2009

AUSTRALIA will supply $50 billion worth of liquefied natural gas to China over the next 20 years in the nation's biggest ever trade deal.

That $50B is coming just days after the $25B deal with India.
Work should start in January- February which would tie up with what my mate was told when he put in the application.

And in a year or so the ones in QLD will start up.

Origin site settled for LNG project
Mathew Murphy
August 19, 2009

ORIGIN Energy and ConocoPhillips have agreed to build their liquefied natural gas plant at Laird Point on Curtis Island after unsuccessfully jockeying for a better position further south on the island.

The $35 billion Australia Pacific LNG (APLNG) joint venture will theoretically become neighbours with BG, Santos/Petronas and Shell, which have all announced plans to build separate plants on Curtis Island, off Gladstone, in Queensland.

 

[MichaelW]

Awesome!

Just hope the Gorgon gas to China wasn't sold too cheaply like the Greater Sunrise gas was. Its all and good to lock down these big contracts, but you need to get the pricing right or you end up giving it away. BHP and RIO's annual ore pricing contracts is the sort of thing that needs to be in place for these long run LNG contracts too.

All good for us. I work for OneSteel Piping Systems with regional accountability for NSW and QLD. We supply pipes to the LNG type sites as they're developed and there's a fair bit going on up here. NSW is mostly for coal mines around Newcastle which are still running hot. Future is looking shiny, and I like this little move to Brisbane better every day...

What Gorgon means for Australia

The $50 billion Gorgon gas deal with China will personally affect every person in Australia. The tremors will be just as great in the eastern states as they are in Western Australia.

In the publicity that goes with the deal, much is made of the construction activity and the on-going revenue that Gorgon will generate. Those benefits are huge but they are dwarfed by the fact that the deal cements in the amazing link between the Australian dollar and the Chinese economy.

It is impossible to understate the importance of this development. The Chinese now know that they can invest in Australia and not face a serious currency risk. We are going to see them buy property in the eastern states and they will support our debt markets on a much larger scale.

So, Daz, maybe the Eastern States will still get a bit of a lift out of all this China-centric economic activity down under. Makes sense, a bit like the Japanese and the Gold Coast in the 80's only on a MUCH bigger scale. China v Japan: No competition!! China wins hands down.

Cheers,
Michael

 

[Dazz]

So, Daz, maybe the Eastern States will still get a bit of a lift out of all this

Let's hope so Michael.

 

[HiEquity]

Only by a few hours.

Still not convinced!

From the article you linked:
"Mr Ferguson's presence at the signing gives the clearest indication yet that the Federal Government will give final environmental approval for the project. Environment Minister Peter Garrett is expected to sign off on it next month."

I imagine the "deal" that would have been signed would have a number of conditions precedent, namely:
1) Environmental approval by Midnight Oi - I mean Peter Garrett!
2) A positive Final Investment Decision by the JV partners...

The Petro China deal gives them an offtake for 40 million tonnes over twenty years = 2 tonnes per year. Gorgon's annual production will be 15 million tonnes per year - there is still a rather large gap to fill there in their revenue!

However, I do agree the likelihood of the project happening keeps improving every week... despite Chevron's silence! Check their website - no announcements have been made on it about any of this... I find that very interesting in the middle of this media storm!

 

[Ausprop]

There were several pointers of late that seemed a bit strange but all seem to fit in together now....

- huge contracts for things such as the buildng at the AMC in Cockburn (didn't make sense when project wasn't confirmed)
- Barnett talking about bringing in Chinese workers and of skills shortages in the middle of a "recession"
- I noted a full page ad for Chevron in the Sunday paper. That night my wife coincidentally questioned why an oil company (Chevron) needed to advertise on TV
- Chevron takes 14 floors of space behond the woodside tower
- the engineering co my mate works at takes on - I think it was 180 engineers? - for work on the project
- head of Shell flies to Perth and then onto Canberra

then I read yesterday that the Chinese $50bn deal was most likely signed months ago - click. This has been a done deal for quite some time - the pollies have been saving it for maximum effect.

I see Barnett is syaign several more deals about to be unveiled.

 

[Dazz]

Chevron takes 14 floors of space behind the woodside tower

I think they are in QV1 Ausprop, next door to the Woodside tower.....they certainly were when I worked with them.

Lucky buggers whoever owns that....

 

[Ausprop]

they have stuff all over the place, but they just signed 14 floors in the new building north of woodside. a lot of the nice builidngs around town dont advertose their oil occupants for safety reasons e.g. the halliburton building in west perth. Chevron is the same, being in also in that new one on Thomas street west perth

 

[asdf]

Impossible Ausprop. Perth has had it's boom.


Apparently the epicentre of the world - Sydney - is where all booms originate. We must wait our turn again until the ripple filters across the paddock and the cycle starts again.


How dare these 50B resource contracts not respect the normal housing cycle.


Hope a few of the major suppliers are looking for yard space. Time for another market rental review maybe ?? Yippee.

Every property expert is suggesting to buy in Sydney. We all know when the media starts reporting this, its already too late. Where have they all been? Prices have already moved across the entire range of properties. Theres no boom coming. Prices are still unrealistically expensive. Last time I checked, the median salary is still below $60k. Our state economy is the worst in the country with nothing going for it, probably marginally better than California.

Which is the closest town that will be benefitting from this Gorgon project?

 

[itinerantotter]

giddyup - i wonder if my broker can swing a karratha property to help service some debt...?

Shares in Decmil might be the go .

cheers

 

[regrow]

We are still drilling the wells out here and every Chevron personal you speak to its full steam ahead....well thats if the rig stops falling apart.

Last month we changed out the crown sheive cluster, the top drive sheive assembly and the heal section of the boom on one of the cranes. Down time approx 4-5 weeks at a cost of approx 25 Million so I was told.

Last two weeks we have been changing out the top drive. They charted a 747 to fly it from LA to Syd then another 747 to Perth, truck to Karratha, then boat to the rig. Cost...I dont even want to guess

Now we have been drilling for 2 days and tonight one of the compensator cables parted to which I had the privilage of witnessing. The steel cable is made up of a lot of smaller cables to make one large one approx 4-5 inches in diameter. Glad I was not under it or good night Irene.

Apart from that we are drilling ahead with the wells for the Gorgon project....until the next break down.

Regards

Regrow

 

[redwing]

There were several pointers of late that seemed a bit strange but all seem to fit in together now....

- huge contracts for things such as the buildng at the AMC in Cockburn (didn't make sense when project wasn't confirmed)
- Barnett talking about bringing in Chinese workers and of skills shortages in the middle of a "recession"
- I noted a full page ad for Chevron in the Sunday paper. That night my wife coincidentally questioned why an oil company (Chevron) needed to advertise on TV
- Chevron takes 14 floors of space behond the woodside tower
- the engineering co my mate works at takes on - I think it was 180 engineers? - for work on the project
- head of Shell flies to Perth and then onto Canberra

then I read yesterday that the Chinese $50bn deal was most likely signed months ago - click. This has been a done deal for quite some time - the pollies have been saving it for maximum effect.

I see Barnett is syaign several more deals about to be unveiled.

LNG for India also

Talk of the QLD projects and the other WA projects now gaining momentum

 

[grossreal]

hi all
you guys out in the sticks can you give me a bit of a heads up of where this is and what towns are around that you think will grow.
not sure if it will efferct sydney or the east unless you are into gas.
what it will do is it will give a spirt to workers in these fields
it will also bring in people from other lands working and in turn wanting investments or investment properties
we just had a drop in a few of the rules for overseas investment
now will this be good for the east coast
my view is yes
why
these workers will be on high incomes
and they want negative gearing
so they want high end product
and thats whats hurting at the moment.
so options on high end stuff is the way to go for me and flick the option
as the heat builds
just a view